A group of researchers from Microsoft and the University of Michigan poked multiple holes in the security of Samsung's SmartThings smart home platform.

The researchers said in a new security analysis published earlier this week that hackers could use these vulnerabilities to seize control of devices such as smart locks and smoke detectors connected to the SmartThings system.

The group staged four different attacks on the smart home platform, the most sever of which involved using an Android app that controls services for different devices connected to SmartThings.

The attack began with a spearphishing email that would fool users into clicking a link that would take them to the real login page for the SmartThings site. The victim of the hack would then log in, but a flaw in the SmartThings web server would let the attackers steal his or her credentials.

The researchers employed this attack method in order to hack into the cloud-based controls for a Schlage smart lock that was connected to SmartThings and then create a four-digit PIN to unlock it whenever they wanted.

The other three attacks involved fooling users into downloading malicious apps from SmartThings' dedicated app store. The most difficult part of these attacks was actually loading the apps onto the store, which the researchers did not do because of potential legal repercussions, according to WIRED.

However, a defect in SmartThings' privileges for apps let the researchers employ a malicious app that would activate devices or steal PINs for smart locks.

SmartThings announced that it had started collaborating with the researchers in order to fix the defects they discovered. SmartThings also blamed the company that made the app for the flaw that the researchers used to gain control of the Schlage lock, as it claimed that the company did not follow SmartThings' developers guidelines.

But the researchers countered that the true problem was much simpler in that the SmartThings platform lets apps have access to far too many privileges, which in turn lets any malicious app cripple any device connected to SmartThings.

It is these types of cybersecurity issues that have kept the smart home market from truly taking off here in the U.S., as consumers are fearful of security and privacy risks involved with unsecured or vulnerable smart home devices.

Hacks of this type help draw media attention to the dangers involved with vulnerable IoT devices, but they don't illustrate all the ways that hackers can use these vulnerabilities in the real world. Hackers could potentially crash a compromised car, but they are more likely to exploit IoT devices to gain entry to corporate and government networks and databases.

Jonathan Camhi of BI Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service, has compiled a detailed report on IoT Security that examines how vulnerable IoT devices will create new opportunities for different types of hackers. It also forecasts the market for solutions that can help secure IoT devices, and explains how different security measures can be used to protect these devices against hackers.

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Here are some of the key takeaways from the report:

Research has repeatedly shown that many IoT device manufacturers and service providers are failing to implement common security measures in their products.

Hackers could exploit these new devices to conduct data breaches, corporate or government espionage, and damage critical infrastructure like electrical grids.

Investment in securing IoT devices will increase five-fold over the next five years as adoption of these devices picks up.

Traditional IT security practices like network monitoring and segmentation will become even more critical as businesses and governments deploy IoT devices.

Forecasts the market for solutions that help secure IoT devices against attacks.

Examines how different types of hackers could exploit IoT devices for financial gain, media attention, or to further a geopolitical cause.

Explains how organizations can secure IoT devices at both the device and network level.

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